How Strength Training Ups Masters Marathoners' Economy

6% gain in running economy after six weeks of high-weight/low-rep program.

Masters marathoners who want to improve their running economy might consider hitting the gym rather than the track, suggests a study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.

Running economy is a measure of how efficiently you use the oxygen you take in while running. All other things being equal, if you improve your running economy, you should be able to run faster at the same effort level as you previously did at a slower pace (or you should be able to run the same pace with less effort).

In running-workout terms, repeats lasting 1 to 2 minutes at about your mile race pace, with plenty of rest between, are usually prescribed for improving running economy. This new study looked at whether adding weight training to traditional marathon training could produce similar benefits.

Sixteen marathoners in their early to mid 40s were split into three groups: one that did high-weight/low-rep lifting for six weeks; one that did low-weight/high-rep lifting for six weeks; and one that did no weight training. The marathoners were all members of the same running club, with the same coach, and in the early stages of a 12-week marathon build-up. Therefore, the researchers figured, their running training was mostly similar; the main variable was the weight training.

The marathoners who lifted for six weeks did the same upper- and lower-body exercises, including leg presses, half squats, bench presses, and lat pulldowns. The difference was that some of them lifted at 85-90% of their one-rep maximum for each exercise, and did four sets of three to four reps per exercise. The other lifting group followed a program more typically advised for distance runners, with three sets of 10 reps for each exercise, performed at 70% of their one-rep maximum for the exercise.

After six weeks, the non-lifting runners and the low-weight/high-rep group hadn't improved their running economy at marathon race pace. The high-weight/low-rep group, however, had become 6.17% more efficient at marathon race pace.

The high-weight/low-rep group also improved their one-rep max on the exercises by 17% over the six weeks. This happened even though their body mass, fat-free mass, or percent body fat didn't change over the six weeks. In other words, they got much stronger in one-rep-max terms without adding additional muscle.

The researchers think this seeming contradiction is what explains the improvement in running economy. The high-weight/low-rep program, they concluded, resulted in the marathoners being able to better recruit existing muscle fibers. These neural adaptations, in turn, made for more efficiency when running at marathon race pace, because of the runners' increased ability to recruit muscle fibers.

The researchers think that more masters marathoners should consider such a high-weight/low-rep program. In addition to the running benefits, the researchers write, it's also practical from a time-management perspective, which should appeal to masters marathoners who fit in their training around work and family. Moreover, shooting for improvements in running economy in the weight room means keeping the running focus on more marathon-specific workouts, such as high-quality tempo runs and long runs.

It's reasonable to extend the findings of this study to all marathoners, given that earlier research has found running economy benefits from strength training for younger runners.